NO STOPPING ON FINAL TURN

The only two homers Sunday at Fenway Park were hit by the Texas Rangers, the second of which put the Red Sox in a five-run hole in the sixth inning.

Not a problem for the comeback kids.

"There's something to be said for just plugging away and not feeling sorry for yourself and trying to play the game," manager Terry Francona said. "Some good things happened. Actually, some great things happened."

Two runs in the seventh inning happened, then a dramatic, two-out rally in the eighth produced four more, the last scoring on a bases-loaded walk by Sean Casey as the Red Sox came all the way back for a 6-5 victory before a crowd of 37,480.

The victory, their fourth in a row overall and second straight after an eighth-inning rally, gave the Red Sox a 1 1/2-game lead over Baltimore in the American League East.

The Red Sox have won five games in their final turn at-bat.

"We play all nine innings," said Dustin Pedroia, who tied the score with a pinch hit double in the eighth, then scored the go-ahead run on Casey's walk. "We play to win. I don't think anybody was quitting, that's for sure."

David Ortiz was the catalyst Sunday. After the Red Sox scored twice in the seventh to cut the Rangers' lead to 5-2, Ortiz legged out a single into the right field shift with two out in the eighth and the Red Sox trailing, 5-3.

First baseman Ben Broussard argued the call with umpire Gary Darling, not paying attention to rookie Jed Lowrie, who was on second to start the play and never stopped running around third.

"I got an early break on it with two outs," Lowrie said. "I hesitated at third, because I thought I saw [third base coach DeMarlo Hale] hesitate. Once I got around third, I made a break for it."

Lowrie scored without drawing a throw, making it a one-run game.

"Oh, that was huge," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "Once you didn't get him at first base, you have to be aware that you have a runner at second and you just can't let him cross the dish. We'd have blown that guy up at home."

Instead, it was the Rangers who blew up. Closer C.J. Wilson, who hadn't blown a save in five previous opportunities, then faced Pedroia, who was batting in the cleanup spot after Manny Ramirez was ejected in the second inning for arguing balls and strikes.

Pedroia, making his first pinch hit appearance of the season, drove a low pitch into in deep center, allowing Ortiz to score all the way from first with the tying run.

"It's a game-changer," Francona said. "We told him the inning before, 'Wilson's going to get into this game and you're going to hit off him somewhere.' And the situation arose."

Center fielder Josh Hamilton, in a rush to get the ball back to the infield, threw wildly, and it rolled aimlessly back toward the shortstop hole. Pedroia, having just reached second, saw the throw and scampered to third, barely eluding Hank Blalock's tag.

"I saw the ball didn't go in the triangle and I was like, I might as well stop at second, because I can score from second just as easily as I can score from third," Pedroia said. "Then I looked up and the ball was bouncing. I figured I was at least faster than a rolling ball in that thick grass. Barely."

With the lead run at third, Wilson walked Kevin Youkilis intentionally, then walked J.D. Drew unintentionally, loading the bases for Casey, who drew a walk on a 3-and-2 pitch to put the Red Sox ahead, 6-5.

"We had them where we wanted them," Washington said.

Tim Wakefield (2-0, 3.96 ERA) went eight innings, allowing a leadoff homer to Ian Kinsler in the first and a three-run blast by Milton Bradley in the sixth. But he stayed in long enough to get the victory.

The rally evoked memories of last season's Mother's Day miracle, when the Red Sox scored six runs in the ninth to beat the Orioles, 6-5.

"It's just how we drew it up," Francona said. "Again, we didn't have the lead for very long, but we seem to get it at the right time. You keep playing, because these are hard games to win. But every once in a while, if you have a good enough team, like we feel like we do, you win some of those."